A 30-year-old Berkeley resident was fatally shot Thursday evening in South Berkeley, marking the city’s second homicide of the year.
Police officers responding to numerous reports of gunfire at around 6:30 p.m. found Kenneth Jerome Tims Jr. lying in the middle of King Street just south of 62nd Street suffering from multiple gun shot wounds, according to Berkeley police Sgt. Mary Kusmiss. Paramedics from the Berkeley Fire Department at the scene pronounced the victim dead at 6:39 p.m.
Berkeley police have not made any arrests in the shooting and cannot confirm a motive, though Kusmiss said investigators do not believe the shooting was random.
“We feel strongly this was not a community member walking down the street that was a victim of a random shooting, given the nature of the scene and from our experience in terms of homicides,” Kusmiss said.
Three weeks ago on May 20, two individuals were shot and critically injured less than a block away at the intersection of 63rd and King streets. Doran Williams Jr., an Oakland resident, is wanted in connection with the shooting on a no-bail arrest warrant for one count of attempted murder and one count of assault with a deadly weapon.
Kusmiss said police are investigating a possible connection between the two shootings.
“Any time there are shootings in close proximity to each other, geographically or in terms of time, we always investigate whether there may be a connection,” she said.
In Berkeley’s first homicide of the year on Feb. 11, a suspected gang member was fatally stabbed on the 2100 block of Curtis Street in West Berkeley. There were six homicides in 2009 and eight in 2008, according to police.
The City of Berkeley is offering $15,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect responsible for the shooting. Bay Area Crime Stoppers is offering an additional $2,000 reward.
Police are asking for anyone with information regarding the shooting to contact the Berkeley homicide detail at (510)981-5741 or the 24-hour non-emergency number of (510) 981-5900. Anonymous tips can be placed with Bay Area Crimes Stoppers at (800)-222-TIPS.